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I held a jewel in my fingers And went to sleep. The day was warm, and winds were prosy; I said: "'T will keep." I woke and chid my honest fingers, - The gem was gone; And now an amethyst remembrance Is all I own.
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Authorship
- by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886), no title, appears in Poems by Emily Dickinson, first published 1891 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)
- by Gloria Coates (b. 1938), "I held a jewel in my fingers", from 15 Songs on Poems by Emily Dickinson, no. 2. [ sung text verified 1 time]
- by Henry Mollincone (b. 1946), "I held a jewel", published 1966 [SSAA chorus and piano or harp], from Five Poems of Love [ sung text not verified ]
Available translations, adaptations, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- GER German (Deutsch) (Bertram Kottmann) , copyright © 2016, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 8
Word count: 45
Je tenais un Joyau dans mes doigts -- Et j'allais dormir -- Le jour était tiède , et les vents étaient ennuyeux -- Je dis « il restera » -- Je m'éveillais -- et grondais mes doigts honnêtes, La Gemme était partie -- Et maintenant, un souvenir d'Améthyste Est tout ce que je possède --
About the headline (FAQ)
Translation of title "I held a jewel in my fingers" = "Je tenais un Joyau dans mes doigts"Authorship
- Translation from English to French (Français) copyright © 2016 by Guy Laffaille, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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- a text in English by Emily Dickinson (1830 - 1886), no title, appears in Poems by Emily Dickinson, first published 1891
This text was added to the website: 2016-11-08
Line count: 8
Word count: 48